Saylor

“We weren’t making out! It was a kiss!”

“Apparently, it was a good one ‘cause I’m pretty sure I heard you whimper when he pulled away.”

My teeth dig into my inner cheek to keep from grinning as my face flames with embarrassment.

“I hate you right now. You know that, right?”

“Love you too,” she sings, pushing away from the wall. “Goodnight, Say.”

“Hey,” I call out as she heads to her room.

“Yeah?”

“For what it’s worth, you’re going to be okay. Whether or not Liam comes back, you’ll be okay.”

Her eyes shine with unshed tears before she takes a deep breath and gives me a jerky nod. “Goodnight.”

Then she disappears down the hall to her bedroom. With a quick twist of my wrist, I snap the silver lock into place on our front door. My shoes scuff along the wood floors as I make my way to my room, then slip them off and change into some pajamas. The water is cold when I splash it on my face to rinse off my makeup and brush my teeth before sliding between my satin sheets.

My phone vibrates on my nightstand, lighting up the otherwise dark room with a notification.

Curious, I roll over and pick it up.

OD: How was your night?

With a grin, I try to tamper down my feelings, but it feels almost impossible as I reply with the most blasé response I can think of.

Slytherin4ever: Fine. Yours?

OD: Just fine?

I roll my eyes.

Slytherin4ever: Okay…it was REALLY good. Happy now?

OD: Yes. Are you gonna ask how my night went?

I snort before remembering I’m not supposed to know how his night went. Because he isn’t talking to Saylor right now. He’s talking to Slytherin4ever.

Why is he messaging her and not me?

Curiosity eats at my guilt for creating this situation in the first place as I type my response.

Slytherin4ever: Okay…how did your night go?

OD: My night was good. Great, actually. I finally kissed her.

My cheeks pinch with a giant smile as I read the message. He’s like a little kid on his birthday who’s dying to brag about all the cool gifts he received. And it’s absolutely adorable. We used to tell each other everything. He used to be the first person I’d call or text. Even after we broke up, my hands would naturally pull up his contact info, itching to push send anytime anything exciting would come up in my life.

And now, he’s reaching out to her. Slytherin4ever.

Shaking off my insecurities, I reread his last message, then type my reply.

Slytherin4ever: Is that right?

OD: Yeah. And it only confirmed my feelings for her. I love the shit out of that girl.

Like a sucker punch, his words leave me breathless. I type out a dozen responses, but none of them feel right. I feel too guilty to ask him anything about it. He shouldn’t be messaging me. And he wouldn’t be if I hadn’t messed with him in the first place.